Sheriff’s deputy wrestles alligator away from middle school

A Florida sheriff's deputy took matters into her own hands last week when a seven-foot alligator was spotted trying to break through the fence of a local middle school.

Jessica McGregor, a 29-year-old Lake County sheriff's deputy and mother of two, responded to the call, fashioned a noose from a 30-foot rope and "lassoed the would-be intruder," the Orlando Sentinel reports.

"I got him turned around, and he started to spin and flop and jump," McGregor told the paper. "Once he got tired, he just laid there and wiggled his tail. I threw the rope over him and dropped down with my knees behind his front legs. He jerked around a little bit and just gave up."

The deputy, who said she and her brother used to catch alligators for fun, explained that she didn't want to wait the estimated two hours for the professional trapper to arrive.

"I've lived in Lake County my whole life," McGregor told the paper. "Back in the day, you had these things come up on your land, and you just caught 'em up and threw 'em back in the nearest watering hole."